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History
Before WWIII June 4th, 2500 – midnight Small steel cube appears in a corridor of CERN, it goes completely unnoticed for 13 years. June 4th, 2513 – 13:07 First tests performed on a new phenomena in hopes of developing teleportation. A small steel cube with a tracking device is placed into the apparatus and vanishes. A large discharge of energy is recorded, but the cube fails to arrive at its destined position. June 5th, 2513 – 09:24 The cube is found kicked under a section of the particle accelerator. Its internal clock records that it arrived there thirteen years ago. The scientists in charge of the experiment promptly go and get drunk for several hours. June 6th, 2513 – 18:38 After several more experiments a formula is worked out to approximate the arrival time of objects placed in the machine, and the position that they will arrive in. June 7th, 2513 – 03:56 One of the scientists, a Briton named Joseph Weller, is unwilling to wait until safety testing on live subjects is completed. He decides that a good test would be simply to use the machine on himself, leaving a note so that he can be recovered, and climbs inside the machine. June 7th, 2513 – 08:05 Joseph Weller's note is read and causes a minor panic. He has set out to try and uncover who was the real Jack the Ripper and stop his murders. Terrified of time paradoxes the team quickly try to recover him using the machine. June 7th, 2513 – 08:55 Joseph Weller is recovered from his time jaunt and Jack the Ripper's rampage is finally solved. When Joseph returns through the machine it is evident that he is completely insane. Blood covers his clothes and he holds a vicious knife in one hand. He quickly attacks his rescuers, diving back into the machine to try and escape capture. The machine projects him forwards through time. All attempts to recover him fail. June 10th, 2513 – 16:32 Despite the tragedy, work on the project continues and more live subjects are used. Guinea pigs, monkeys and rats seem to travel through time with no problems. After some consultation it is decided to send someone else back through time to prevent a tragedy, this time staying ready to retrieve them at a moments notice. An American on the team, George Delaney is chosen and prepares to travel back to try and prevent, or at least finally solve the Kennedy assassination. When he returns the mystery is finally solved. George himself killed Kennedy, and then turned his gun on himself shortly after rematerialising in the present day. A tape recorder sent alng with him gives a harrowing narration of the experience: “Well I'm here now, waiting for Lee Harvey Oswald to appear. I've never bought into that conspiracy shit anyway. Slightly strange though, I've got this overwhelming urge to kill someone or something running through me. I suppose it must just be the rage I feel at him, the killer of someone who could have been our greatest leader. The convoy is pulling in just now. I can't help it, I've never realised how much I wanted to destroy things before. I'm raising the gun to my shoulder, it's almost as if I have no control.” At this point the tape records two gunshots. “I've done it. I've never felt such an amazing feeling. I'm not going back, I'll flee, I'll get out of here and do it again.” It is quickly decided that no further human subjects shall be sent through time. June 29th, 2513 – 10:00 The team report the results of their experiments to their sponsor countries. Within two days CERN is locked down by various national and international security agencies, including NATO, the UN, and the private national armies of most nations involved. The leaders of these nations talk of a new period of wealth and prosperity that will be heralded in by responsible use of the technology. June 30th, 2513 – 02:07 The first gunshot is fired by an American soldier at a supposed suicide bomber. After a few minutes investigation the victim turns out to be a British soldier. The British army is furious and demands that the Americans leave under threat of attack. Most of the rest of the international force side with the British. August 2nd, 2513 – 03:06 Deciding that the technology must not fall into the wrong hands the UN ask that all national forces leave immediately. Most UN soldiers immediately desert to their own countries forces. The rest are quickly despatched by an alliance of the international forces. CERN goes into an immediate security lock down, leaving the soldiers outside. August 6th, 2513 – 05:07 Following several more incidents at the research site, bombers are deployed by the Americans and British, now in an uneasy alliance, to try and clear the area for their own troops. August 6th,2513 – 08:09 Other countries involved in the defence force quickly retaliate, striking at major military targets in Britain with stealth bombers. America is too far to reach so quickly. Europe declares that it will side with Britain in the war that is evidently coming, so long as britain breaks off its treaty with America. Unable to match the entire force of europe on its own and with America refusing to lend aid Britain immediately bows. August 16th, 2513 – 21:09 Negotiations between Europe, America, Asia, Africa and Russia officially break down. War is declared. Switzerland declares a national emergency and that its citizens should evacuate for neighbouring countries immediately. Hostilities begin a few hours later. After the war World War 3 escalated quickly to a full nuclear exchange. Scientists and notable members of other professions that the government deemed worthy, joined the rich and privileged in a small number of military bunkers across America. Similar refuges were filled on every continent of the old world then sealed against the inevitable bombs and any possible attempted breech by the general populace if they happened to discover the well-hidden facilities. The largest of these bunkers was located in the side of a protective Colorado canyon. Inside it was immense. Rooms linked by corridors that went on for miles, lined by bunks (both double and single) reaching 8 levels high. A constant, low, light level shone gloom throughout, with one exception - a large hydroponics room, which would be the sole source of food once the racks of tinned and dehydrated meals were exhausted, shone in steel, chrome and glass, all powered by a reactor even deeper underground. The survivors knew they would drink recycled water and breathe the sterile recirculating air for years to come, but as the final news broadcasts related the scale of the disaster and scientists made calculations from the readings their instruments still operating on the surface, it became evident that even the nearly endless resources of this bunker would be stretched to their limit. The first years passed slowly, but, with the birth of the first children, a change to the spirit of the bunker altered, turning from mourning what was lost, into optimism for the future. The whole dynamic of the group became focused on education and entertainment. Soon the caverns rang to the sounds of children and laughter. As generations grew and passed, the war above was all but forgotten. Driven by the deteriorating state of their captivity, the descendents of the survivors broke through defenses that had shielded them for a thousand years and walked out into a very different landscape than humanity had ever experienced on Earth before. They knew that the air was safe from samples taken off the bunker filtration system but what else they would find was a mystery. Most of the soil was scorched and dead, eroded to bare rock or vitrified to a smooth shine. All trace of construction was gone and even the largest mountain ranges were flattened down, crumbled and melted to a shadow of their former height. However there were signs of hope - in the distance there was a patch of green. All caution forgotten, the first to emerge began running over the rough and discoloured ground to investigate the patch of plant-life. The first signs were lichens and mosses, peppered with the occasional rounded spikes of stunted grasses, which nobody noticed - they were already absorbed by larger shrubs and twisted trees. The vegetation was diverse and contorted, but well established in a slight hollow with small pools of water dotted around, occasionally flowing and merging but never seeming to establish any type of permanent watercourse. Before anyone spent very much time outside there were a range of tests to be conducted to confirm radiation levels and check for dangerously mutated bacteria or toxins in the water. With these basics checked out, a start was made on differentiating which of the plants and fruits which could be edible or otherwise useful from any that were poisonous or harmful. Then some longer-term observations got underway, such as an attempt to access changes to climate and weather patterns, and live capture traps were put out to see what still existed of the indigenous wildlife. From insects to small mammals noticeable changes were readily evident, making it surprising that even the small variety of species discovered had escaped annihilation. The survivors had become accustomed to a vegetarian diet, as the stock the bunker held had run out after only the first few generations. Since then all their food had been produced from the hydroponics plant, so not finding anything that would make good eating actually came as somewhat of a relief. The water rising in this area was of relatively good quality and seemed quite copious, possibly inexhaustible, so it made a perfect test plot to attempt to extend irrigation from. Sieving the rock and debris eventually provided a sufficient quantity of barely suitable growing medium. Meanwhile the bunker's seed store was searched to provide a good selection of sample crops. Carefully germinated, they were planted out along side cuttings taken from the more useful of the indigenous plants. Some seedlings failed, but the more hardy ones included fast-growing, hard stemmed types (genetically modified from bamboo) and varieties which would produce good food crops or oil-rich seeds, with which civilisation could be re-built. Rather than regularly making the journey from the bunker, some of the more-dedicated farmers constructed buildings close to their crops. Large stony debris extracted from the ground created the walls, with rooves braced from plastic tubes from the bunker's stores and covered by aluminium survival blankets. Window glass had to be sourced from the bunker's art collection; stripping less important canvases out of frames, which would then be installed in the wall spaces. The next logical step was to run a length of cable out from the bunker to support lighting and power a motor to better pump water into the irrigation channels. Subsequent exploration discovered similar isolated patches of vegetation, dotted, seemingly at random, across the landscape. These were also farmed as appropriate to their soil and water supplies. One scouting party's next find was rather unexpected, a wooded glade which was much larger than any of the others yet seen, almost a mile across. The governing committee's discussion on how best to utilise this area quickly formulated a plan to re-locate out of the bunker and build their new city around the glade, to be called Genesis. The first buildings were the same, heavy stone and rubble housing as the farms; but these formed an industrial hub, refining the debris in the rubble into usable metals and glass. Working from the basic oils they grew, a fuel not too dissimilar to diesel could be produced and one of the military trucks in the bunker was converted to work on it. This enabled items to be shipped out of the bunker to the new site. Amongst the first to go was half of the hydroponics bay, now that so much food was growing it was hardly needed, and could be converted into a microbial process producing plastics from fresh or waste oils. Eventually most of the bunker had been stripped, leaving only the power plant and a small part of the hydroponics unit, set to reprocess waste into fertiliser for the farmers to collect. Power lines ran from the bunker to Genesis, protected by stony rubble, and the entrance to the bunker was disguised by the same material. The glade was entirely surrounded by the city of Genesis, with the first few storeys of stone buildings forming the foundations which advanced tower blocks and other revolutionary structures began to grew upon. There was a lattice structure extending up around the glade with the intent of forming a huge glass dome over it; and a thick, defensive rock wall rising high around the outskirts of the city. As exploration extended the agricultural areas beyond the city, those venturing farthest out were the first who noticed slender plumes of smoke in the distance. Binoculars trained on the areas, new humanoids and animals were seen; savages and mutants in appearance. Continued observation showed them as relatively peaceful cattle herders and farmer/gatherers, they seemed semi-nomadic, probably taking advantage of different areas' qualities during the year. After a while, curiosity overwhelmed trepidation and a small, armed, group ventured out to make contact. Surprised to see the survivors, the tribesmen fled back to their village elders and shaman. These men wore furs and feathers, combined with textiles and scavenged items, the application of which could be extremely creative. Warrior guards with hub-cap breastplates, their arms covered with cast iron guttering fragments and bore weapons such as exhaust pipes or building re-bar still with a concrete fragment attached. Their housing was constructed from wooden poles supporting waterproofed fabrics and skins. When the first words were exchanged with their leaders, it became evident that their language was similar in some ways, but changes over time made communication slow. They are creatures of mysticism and ritual, living by legends passed down, mostly verbally, but they seem to hold some precious writings as religious objects or ceremonial objects. From what could be ascertained about their history it seems likely that these were people who sheltered from the blast but emerged while there was still too much radiation. Reduced to scavenging by the total obliteration of society's architecture, they tended what animals they could constrain, but there was not enough that they could afford to waste anything, so even if their stock acquired significant mutations they were forced to either eat or breed from the animals. They were caught in trap of a steady deterioration resulting in two-headed cows and some unusual food choices, such as porcupines. There seemed to be no particular danger from contact with the tribesmen, so they were allowed limited entry into Genesis; but the mayoral administration decided that this would require some degree of supervision to settle any disputes before they got out of hand, hence a rudimentary police force was created. Mainly situated at the entrance gates, their primary duty was to exclude the more undesirable individuals, especially any extreme physical mutations who might risk being stoned in the streets. The first visitors came to trade, bartering furs, skins and fabrics with the most success. They were cautious of venturing deep into the city, so market places formed just inside each entrance gate, but some of the tribesmen had become so afraid of any type of technology that they refused to enter and preferred to set their wares on the ground outside instead. Those in authority began noticing that some of the traders made significantly more in their dealings than others, though their goods were very similar. Questioning the people who had bought from these traders, it quickly became noticeable that they had found the price settled on was precisely the maximum they had considered it was worth and they were a little unsure how that figure had been reached. Clearly something strange was going on. It was hard to get to the reason behind what was going on, but the group which were later to become the "ministry of psychic research" somehow managed to achieve their investigations without the tribes becoming overly curious about the missing individuals or some strange circumstances of death. Isolated in the highest completed floor of a tower block which strangely stopped construction work for a couple of months, the general populace didn't notice the screams, which the mayor was assured were kept to an absolute minimum. The ministry selected individuals they considered to be promising subjects, taking from the most elite families possible, and soon discovered that a latent psychic power existed in a proportion of their own citizens too. The first the city's inhabitants knew of the project was when a voluntary test was offered to all teen to twenty-five year olds who may be interested in some innovative training. By this time the college building had already been completed, with the ministry and their first wave subjects were securely engaged as its governors and instructors. The work of the police had become more important by this time, as more tribes were gravitating to Genesis and their rites of passage ritual seemed to have undergone a subtle change. Instead of sending their youth into forbidden or dangerous areas to retrieve useful items, they were often sent into the city to steal or vandalise. A few years later the police found their ranks significantly enhanced by many of the graduates of this college, although the highest achievers, especially if from an advantaged background or distinguished family, found themselves being steered towards politics or into other advisory positions. With improved intelligence gathering, the location of a second large glade was identified. The tribes seemed to regard these areas as unnatural, because, though they were lush, animals seemed to be reluctant to enter them. It was agreed that a group of police with a significant complement of psycore should be sent to, secure this area while the government decided how best to utilise a new area. They were slow making their decision, but eventually the government had settled all of their arguments over the new glade's potential. However, the construction crew sent were turned away by those sent to hold the area, who had accrued significant support of the tribal groups in that area. They reported that a mysterious "Lord of Shadows" stepped forward and proclaimed "Shadow Haven" to be his domain and his own psychic college would eclipse that of Genesis. One of the construction crew brought back his camera with photographs of the "Lord of Shadows", but nobody in Genesis could identify him. The final construction areas within the city of Genesis were briskly completed after this event. After Genesis was completed, life for many citizens took a downwards turn. Many trades, including the large numbers of well-respected builders and many of the lesser architects, found their skills were no longer in demand and had to take work and accommodation in the lower, industrial areas of the city. Many would look up from the dirty streets that formed the gutters of the towering glass and metal spires above, watching the exclusive flying cars and helicopters that occasionally flew high above. Once down they saw the other side of the hierarchy they had literally helped build with the police force they once welcomed now becoming the guards keeping them out of the luxurious areas they previously inhabited. Frequent escapees fled in an attempt to reach "Shadow Haven", hearing rumours that its construction was progressing well. At all levels of society a tense, uneasy peace could be felt between Genesis and "Shadow Haven". Just after "Shadow Haven" had been completed to a degree that could accommodate the influx, those with latent psychic talent heard a call from the "Lord of Shadows". Anyone with little ability could easily overlook the whisper, but many heard a shout. Attracted by the offer of new opportunities, an unstoppable crowd (significantly forged from the lower levels) gathered one night, to leave 'en mass' at sunrise, coordinated by the "Lord of Shadows". The next announcement from "Shadow Haven" was that the lost secret of time travel had been re-discovered. This was confirmed just a short time later when a dino-rider was spotted heading towards Genesis. In a successful show of strength against Genesis, the raptor rider circled the locked-down city twice before heading back in the direction it came from. Further evidence was seen of a variety of beasts, including triceratops and stegosaurs. Feeling threatened Genesis opened discussions with the "Shadow Haven", beginning an alliance which led to Genesis getting its own herd of dinosaur mounts. At the time it was unclear what Genesis had agreed in return. Each of these dinosaurs wears a collar onto which control studs have been mounted. The rider wears similar studs on a headband, or other such item, and uses mental powers to guide the beast. Defensive towers were built outside both Genesis and "Shadow Haven" to safely house these animals. It transpired that the "Lord of Shadows" brought through a range of dinosaurs, mainly vegetarian, but including a few meat-eaters for the intimidation factor. However, this led to a feeding problem which the "Lord of Shadows" turned to his most loyal tribal group to solve. They went out hunting for him and returned bearing bodies of rival tribes-people. He appeared not to care that this solution lost him the allegiance of most of the tribes that had been happy to work with him, as they formed a war-band against "Shadow Haven". At about the same time Genesis intelligence discovered the location of a third glade and they were keen to secure it properly this time, but they could not put their full effort into this as they were compelled to enter into the battle surrounding "Shadow Haven". Although the belief on the streets was that this could be an opportunity for Genesis to overpower the "Lord of Shadows", the conditions in their earlier discussions became apparent and they joined forces with "Shadow Haven" against the tribes. During all of this unrest the official signing of a "Utopian Cities" treaty has just been completed including fortress plans for the newly discovered glade. Initial building work there is being hampered by attacks from the tribes, but both settlements are working together to protect the area. Very few people understand what the intent behind the fortress is, but the usual rumour mill is rife with speculation.